Electronic tournament gaming tabletop

ABSTRACT

An electronic tournament gaming tabletop for use with ping pong, beer pong, or other tabletop games. The table includes a means for entering each player&#39;s name and keeping the list of players. The player names and scores are displayed on the surface of the table for use in a tournament. The table may implement a rule of winner remains, advancing the list when an end-game signal is entered by the players, or a bracket. When the feature is specified, usage can be automatically tracked and directly communicated with a cloud system for the accurate tracking and sharing of gameplay information including time of use, while personal identifying information such as names will remain on the device, be erased upon power-off, and never be sent over the internet.

BACKGROUND

Beer pong is a game in which teams stand at opposite ends of the gametable and take turns throwing balls at cups on the other side of thetable. When the ball makes it into a cup, that cup is removed from thetable and the first team to have all their cups removed loses the game.The game is often played in environments with many people and a list isneeded for future players. When a person or team wants to play they addtheir names to the end of the list, and whenever a team loses they arereplaced by the next on the list. Traditionally, the list is kept withpaper and pen.

This list can be subject to water damage, misplacement, tampering orillegibility. The pen could be misplaced or stop working. The system ofdigital name entry adds a level of reliability to the list-keeping whichis unique to a product of this type and improves gameplay. The placementof the list as displayed in the surface of the table is designed to bein the expected location of a paper list and pen in most beer pongtournament environments.

SUMMARY

By including an embedded electronic system for keeping score and aplayers list, that list is guaranteed to remain in its location, aprospective player is always able to add a name to the list as long asthe list is not full, and the list cannot be altered in any way afterbeing entered. The size, material, and features of the table can becustomized to owner specifications but consists of some centralelements. There is a keyboard mounted inside the table accessible to auser standing at one side of the table in the center area. The playerslist is displayed next to the keyboard, visible from where a user wouldstand. At each player's side, there is a display for their name, currentscore, and number of wins. Each player side has a set of two buttons, agreen button and red button, which control their scores and end eachgame. Optional lighting features may react to the win count and otherin-game events.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION

In the following detailed portion of the present description, theteachings of the present application will be explained in more detailwith reference to the example embodiments shown in the drawings, inwhich:

FIG. 1 is a top view of the overall construction,

FIG. 2 is an isometric view of the overall construction, and

FIG. 3 is a bottom view of the overall construction.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION:

FIG. 1 depicts a top view of the game table. The flat top surface (11)is a continuous, rigid, transparent planar sheet serving as the playingsurface. This surface is bonded to a structural framing around the edges(10) which supports the overall enclosure. The structural frame isaffixed to the playing surface using rivets or flat top screws (9)spaced evenly around the perimeter. The long sides of the table are bothflat, to be kept free of protrusions so that the table may be storedresting on its side. Once the power switch has been turned on, a playermay initiate a game session by beginning to enter his or her name. Thereis a keyboard (4) which is of stainless steel construction, rated to betamper-proof and waterproof. Each element is designed and installed suchthat the table is entirely waterproof and washable. The keyboard ismounted under the top surface such that it can be used while standing atthe edge of the table and is easily visible though the top surface. Thekeyboard's output is displayed on the list (5) which is oriented in thesame plane as the keyboard to be legible from the point of view of aplayer at the side of the table. The list consists of a plurality ofdisplays. When the player presses the ‘Enter’ key. the name is capturedand will be displayed on the player-side display (3) designated for thefirst player. This display will be legible from a player standing attheir end of the end of the game table. and a set of buttons isaccessible for adjusting the score and ending a game. The score is shownon the player-side display along with their name as entered, and thenumber of concurrent wins if there is at least one. From the player'sperspective, the left button (1) is red and the right button (2) isgreen. A player's score is initiated at zero and kept for reference.

The only way to adjust score is using the buttons so that the playersalways have final determination over what constitutes a point or not.The table's scorekeeping elements will never attempt to make adetermination on an outcome in the game or supersede a player. Thesecond player to enter their name on the list will see their name movedto display on the opposing end of the table on the second player-sidedisplay (6). In keeping with the left-right convention, the secondplayer will see their red pushbutton (7) on the left side and the greenbutton (8) is on the right from this position. Similarly, the red buttonwill decrement the current score to a minimum value of zero, and thegreen button will increment the score to a maximum value which isdetermined to exceed the maximum score in a reasonable game. Once thereare two players entered on the table, a game session is considered to beinitiated and timekeeping may begin at that moment. When the game ends,the winner will hold their green button while the loser holds their redbutton on the opposite end of the table. This system of player consensusis one of the features of the design intended to preserve the integrityof the gameplay, prevent tampering, and ultimately facilitate a fairtournament. One player on their own may not conclude a game. Thoseopposing red and green buttons must be held simultaneously for an amountof time to trigger an internal clock which begins counting when a wincondition is noted. A win condition is only valid when all of thefollowing is met: the winner's green button is depressed, the winner'sred button is not depressed, the loser's red button is depressed, andthe loser's green button is not depressed. This has only two possibleend-game states, so that when one win condition is detected by theinternal electronics, the counter begins, and only when the condition isheld for a duration of approximately 2 seconds does the table processthe win. At this time, the winning player's win count will increment,their score will return to zero, and the losing player's name is erasedfrom their player-side display. If a third name is entered on the list,it will automatically be moved so that it is now displayed on theloser's player-side display and both score and win count are initiatedat zero. The list will be advanced so that each name entered on the listat the time the win signal is being sent will move up one space afterprocessing and the new player's name will no longer appear on the list.

FIG. 2 features an embodiment of the table from an isometric view. Thetop surface (11) is seen to be flush at the edges of the table with theside. The skirt (13) of the table extends below the surface of the tableand is of a flat rigid material such as a plexiglass which iswaterproof, washable, and has some holes drilled into it for mounting.The skirt is mounted to the structural frame using rivets or flat-topscrews. When lighting is specified, it will be mounted on the inside ofthe skirt surface visible underneath the top plane. These lights,depicted in the drawing by a dashed line (17), can react to gameconditions such as score changes or wins. The player-side buttons (1)are mounted in the skirt, affixed by screws from the inside and sealedat the exterior such that the enclosure remains waterproof. The legs arejoined to the main body of the table by screw at the top of the legs tothe underside corners of the main body (14). This way the overallprofile of the table may be reduced for shipping or storage. The legs(15) are of rigid structural material, also preferably aluminum. Afooting (16) is provided at the bottom of the legs made of rubber,plastic, or similar which serves to protect the floor from scratchingand prevent the table from sliding. The keyboard (4) can be seen to bemounted within a cavity from this angle. The cavity is enclosed on allsides except one, open on the side of the table seen in FIG. 2 fromwhere a user would access. The keyboard's cord runs through a wall ofthis cavity to reach the electronics where its signal is processed. Thatpoke-through is sealed so that the cavity remains waterproofed. Thekeyboard is of a type having mounting holes installed at its corners sothat screws affix the keyboard to the underside of this cavity. Theopposing player-side displays (6) are both seen to be mounted on thesame side of the table along with the buttons. This is because theseelements are only accessible from the underside of the table by openinga hinged joint. The hinged side is the same side that these elements areinstalled on so that when that underside is opened, the cables areminimally stretched and don't require extra length.

FIG. 3 shows the underside view of an embodiment of the table. Thefootings (16) are shown at the corners where the legs screw into themain body of the table. An outer edge piece (18) is affixed to thestructural frame and consists of a flat planar surface installed to beflush with the access door (19). The hinges (20) allow the access doorto swing open so that maintenance can be performed. The circuit boards,keyboard, list, and player-side displays are all mounted to the top-sideof the access door, so everything is accessible when it is opened. Onewould open the door using the latch (21) which is joined to the outeredge such that it is impossible to undo by accident while the table isupright and may be in use.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A game table containing embeddedelectronics which record and manage the list of players and othergameplay information. a. A device according to claim 1 which records thenames and order of players. b. A device according to claim 1 whichallows players to record and adjust their score. c. A device accordingto claim 1 which records and displays concurrent wins for players. d. Adevice according to claim 1 which has speciality for beer pong. e. Adevice according to claim 1 which has speciality for ping pong. f. Adevice according to claim 1 which collects information about its usage.g. A device according to claim 1 which communicates with a cloud-basedserver.
 2. A system facilitating a tournament for a tabletop game alsoacting as the game table. a. A device according to claim 2 which recordsplayers' names. b. A device according to claim 2 which allows players tosee and adjust the scores. c. A device according to claim 2 whichrecords the number of concurrent wins. d. A device according to claim 2which allows players to determine the end of a game. e. A deviceaccording to claim 2 with provisions for operating under winner remainsor bracket-style play. f. A device according to claim 2 with lights thatrespond to in-game events in real-time. g. A device according to claim 2which has capability to monitor usage statistics and communicate to acloud-based server.
 3. A beer pong table with a plurality of screensembedded in the surface displaying gameplay information. a. A deviceaccording to claim 3 with an integrated means of entering players'names. b. A device according to claim 3 which displays the list ofplayers in the table's surface. c. A device according to claim 3 whichdisplays the current players' names in the table's surface at theirrespective player stations at opposing ends of the game table.